MVMT and Daniel Wellington

People in the watch community are very quick to judge people for their watch choice, especially when it comes to MVMT and DW. When we really look at the people that these brands serve, and the impact that they are having on the market we can see that these brands will simply die out.

Audience 

For many these brands serve as an entry way into the watch life. People get into watches, for the most part, through fashion. Through sties like GQ and Mr. Porter, and the like; it has become the norm for men to care about what they put on their body. The first introduction to watches is simply an aesthetic one, with no basis behind it. Unlike the Ben Clymers, or the Wei Kohs, these men are looking at watches as an accessory, without the appreciation for the, ironically, movements, or the provenance. It is simply the look. Companies like MVMT, and DW, offer the hook, that is going to get you to wear a watch, but where they fail is in the retention of a customer base. People don't collect MVMT or DW. These are watches that get you into the door, where you can then come to appreciate the unexplainable magic of time pieces.

Long Term

For that reason MVMT fails, it fails to retain a customer base. Let's take other brands for example; Rolex being an obvious choice. Rolex keep's its customer base, because the majority of people who are buying Rolex's know how fine the time pieces are that they are creating. Jean Claude Biver summed it up well in an interview with Hodinkee's Ben Clymer. Biver states that Hublot, Biver's brand, would never have the same collector populous as Patek, or Audemars Piguet, but Hublot would have collectors. MVMT or DW fails to have real collectors who are passionate about watches and the brand, and eventually the brand will die out for that reason. When you have a quick fix, but no long term fulfillment your brand will fail.

Change?

MVMT seems to be realizing this, with the recent release of their automatic watch, but they have still missed the point entirely. Its not about having a mechanical movement, you can buy a 15 dollar Chinese mechanical watch, which would fulfill ones need for having a cheap mechanical watch, but with MVMT's astronomical price on an otherwise lack luster automatic watch, failure seems to be inevitable.